Durga Puja
Durga Puja (Worship of Durga), also known as Durgotsab (Festival of Durga) has been an annual Bengali festival that marks the worship of Hindu Goddess Durga. Durga Puja includes the worships of Shiva, Lakshmi, Ganesha, Saraswati, Kartikeya and Mahishasura as well. Modern tradition has come to include the display of decorated mandaps and artistically depicted idols of Durga, exchange of Bijoya greetings etc. It is also a festivity of Goddess- mother Durga winning over the evil Maheshasoora- the demon. It symbolizes the worship of power of Good, which always wins over the evil. Durga Puja includes six-day celebrations of Mahalaya, Shashthi, Maha Saptami, Maha Ashtami, Maha Nabami and Bijoya Dashami. The dates of celebrations are set according to traditional Bengali Calendar and the fortnight is called Debi Pokkho- fortnight of the Goddess. Durga Puja is widely celebrated in Bangladesh and in the States of West Bengal and Tripura in India. Not only it is the biggest Hindu festival celebrated, but also the most significant socio-cultural event in Bengali society. In India, Durga Puja is also celebrated in Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa and in some other parts, including Delhi, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Punjab, Kashmir, Karnataka and Kerala. Durga Puja is a major festival in Nepal. Nowadays, many non-residential Bengali cultural organisations arrange Durgotsab in the countries like the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, France, Kuwait etc. According to the Krittibas Ramayana, Rama invokes the Goddess Durga in his battle against Ravana. Although she was traditionally worshipped in the spring, due to contingencies of battle, Rama had to invoke her in the autumn, which is known as akaal bodhan. Today it is this Rama's date for the Puja that has gained ascendancy, although the spring puja, known as Basanti Puja is also present in the Hindu almanac. The prominence of Durga Puja increased during the British Raj in the then Bengal. After the Hindu reformists compared Durga with India, she had become an icon for the Indian independence movement. On the first quarter of the 20th century, the tradition of Baroari or Community Puja was popularised due to this. Today's Puja goes far beyond religion. This year, I had the opportunity to celebrate Durga Puja at my village home at Boali under Modhupur Police Station in Tangail District. It was a great festival participated by all walks of people irrespective of religion, age and gender. Both the Hindu and Muslims participated in the festivity, which signifies the harmony among religions. Like all over Bangladesh, Puja celebration at Modhupur is also marked by a degree of peace and harmony that is expected indeed. The authorities were alert enough to maintain law and order and prevent any untoward incidents during the festival. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the authorities concerned and the government for acting appropriately in this regard.
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